


Change of Fate

by trebleklef



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Depression, M/M, Pre-Canon, i wouldnt necessarily say suicidal things, idk niles youre really bitter, idk some of canon is here some of it isnt, slowly falling in love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-03
Updated: 2018-09-08
Packaged: 2018-09-14 09:19:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 12,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9173233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trebleklef/pseuds/trebleklef
Summary: After a decision not his own, Niles is found in a situation most peculiar; serving a prince as his own personal retainer.





	1. First

**Author's Note:**

> Part of Leoniles week next week! Forgive me that its a week early its just this planned to be VERY LONG

Castle Krakenburg was unlike anything Niles had ever seen. Other manors and noble houses were not as meticulous in architecture, and not laced with traps.

“Do you really think this is a good idea?” Niles asked his three partners. His apprehension with this particular job was extremely evident in his voice.

The three other thieves looked at each other with looks of disdain. “I’m sure it’ll be fine Niles,” one of them said. Niles knew it was a lie. The tone of his voice was soaked in lies.

“What if we get caught this time? It won’t be as easy as slipping out the back door,” Niles stated. He was almost instantly ignored.

“What are we after?” The youngest thief asked.

“Probably the crown,” the eldest grinned.

Niles could feel his heart almost stop when he heard that. Something that heavily guarded would be suicide.

“Are you sure about that?” Niles decided to talk some sense into him. “You do know that’s one of the most heavily guarded things in the castle.”

“I don’t know Niles,” there was a pause. “You’re a pretty sneaky person. We could really depend on you on this mission.”

The eldest sighed. “We managed to get out of that nobleman’s house didn’t we?”

Niles felt like he was being treated like a child. “Look, the only reason we got out of there is because we couldn’t find that doll.”

The eldest shrugged and looked on to see the pattern the guards were patrolling. Niles squinted at the three other thieves. He went to say something but the others were already on their way. The guards had moved out of the way.

Niles followed behind quietly, but still remained suspicious. He unlocked the door for the other three, but something wasn’t right. He instinctively pulled his bow off his shoulder, ready for anything that came his way.

“Something wrong?” the youngest asked. Niles shushed him as quickly as he spoke. Something was definitely wrong. It was too quiet for a castle. The noblemen’s houses were louder than this and there were only a dozen or so people. There must be guards behind corners, or even hiding in plain sight. Only having the one eye didn’t help him much at all.

The torches weren’t lit, and the candles looked as though they had just been blown out. This was a trap. Niles began to back up and bumped right into the person behind him. Soon after, guards swarmed the area.

“I was right!” as Niles turned around; the other three were long gone. His heart sank. He’d been left for dead. These people had been his family and they left him for dead. He decided to push forward, he knew he was dead anyway so he thought he would at least fight his way down.

Most of the guards didn’t stand a chance but a few of them managed to slow him down. Eventually he was up against more than he could handle. He found a door and slipped himself inside quietly.

“Who are you?”

Niles felt his heart in his throat. He slowly turned around to see a young man sitting at a desk, reading by candle light. His maroon coloured eyes scanned Niles analytically. Niles swore to himself quietly. He ran into a royal.

The young man picked up a book and stood up slowly. “What are you doing here?” his tone was dark. Niles knew what kind of mess he got into.

“If you’re going to kill me then do it,” Niles tone was somewhat confident.

“What on Earth?” the young man replied.

“I know who you are. You’re the youngest prince right? Prince Leo?” Niles’ grip on his bow grew tighter.

“That is correct. You are well versed it seems,” Leo fixed his headband with one hand.

“Yeah, whatever you say,” Niles felt his voice crack on the last word. He then dropped his bow and quiver.

Leo’s expression changed as Niles approached him. He instinctively backed up into the bookshelf, seeing as there was an outlaw in his study. After all the stories he had heard from Xander about outlaws in villages, this meant trouble for Leo. Especially when the outlaw grabbed a sword.

Niles handed the hilt to Leo, and all Leo could return to the gesture was a look of confusion.

“I want you to kill me.”

The confusion turned into morbid disbelief at the thought. Why did this man want Leo to kill him? He dropped the tome and took hold of the sword, looking at it carefully, then looking up at Niles. His expression was grim at best.

“Please,” Niles’ voice sounded like it was about to shatter into a dozen pieces. He knelt down before the prince, eye staring at the floor. “Please kill me.”

“Why would I do such a thing? What is wrong with yo-“ In the middle of Leo’s accusation, a thought struck him as peculiar. Caught in the middle of a poor situation, this man’s reaction is to give up? Leo dropped the sword, and smirked at Niles.

“W-What are you doing? I thought I asked you t-“

“No. I want to make you a better offer,” Leo interrupted. “You strike me as an interesting individual, so I’ve decided that I won’t kill you.” Leo picked the sword back up, and placed the blade lightly on both of Niles’ shoulders.

“I relieve you of the previous weight on those shoulders and in its place another,” Niles looked up at the young prince with a look of disbelief. “I hereby dub you as my retainer.”

Niles stood up quickly, backing up into the door with a thud. “A criminal comes into your home, asks you to kill him, and you make him serve you. Nice,” Niles didn’t sound exactly thrilled.

“Oh and you would prefer a public execution at the hands of my father, whom has no mercy for any living thing?” Leo tossed the sword aside, and grabbed the candelabra.

“You confuse me,” Niles squinted at Leo as he brushed by him to open the door. Guards of every shape and size were outside the door. It had just occurred to Niles that he had locked it after entering.

Leo raised a hand. “This man is no longer a threat. Stand down,” he declared. The guards relaxed and went about their business in the castle.

“How are you so sure I’m no longer a threat?” Niles mused.

“Because instead of turning the sword against me, you turned it against yourself by handing it to me. A person who does that doesn’t strike me as a danger to anyone other than himself,” Leo grabbed a book off the desk, and then walked out of the room. “Now come along, we have some work to do.”

Niles rolled his eye. “You’re joking right?”

“Alas, I am not. I’m more of a logical person, not one to tell jokes,” Leo smirked at him, then ushered Niles to follow.


	2. Second

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My headcanons for the beginning of Niles' job is also shared with @birbmeow on twitter/tumblr. Be sure to check them out they are like Leoniles CENTRAL. Also you'll notice that this starts to get more shippy. If theres a non ship version you'd like leave a comment and i'll create an alternate. because after all this is for LEONILES WEEK. So its gonna be shippy.

“Leo, you present this trouble maker to me as your retainer?” the king’s voice was never one Leo wanted to hear when it came to matters of disapproval.

“Yes, I do father,” Leo held his confidence well. Niles stood meekly beside the young prince, afraid to even breathe wrong in front of the king. Leo’s words from the previous night echoed in his head. No mercy for any living thing.

Garon eyed Niles carefully. Niles stopped breathing while Garon examined him.

“You really want this criminal as your retainer then I cannot stop you,” Garon sounded bored with the situation.

“Very well,” Leo responded. Garon then shooed the two of them away.

Leo nearly pushed Niles out of the room.

“You’re really sure about this aren’t you,” Niles sounded so bitter.

“Yes. I’m very sure about this. You’re someone I can trust,” Leo led Niles through the halls to the library.

Trust was a foreign word to Niles. He had trusted in the past and it led to some nasty consequences. Considering he had once trusted those thieves he considered being his family, and they had left him to die. They probably stole from other parts of the castle and made it out with their lives. He sighed heavily.

“Is something wrong?” Leo stopped walking after he noticed Niles stopped dead in his tracks.

“Nothing. Don’t worry about it,” Niles continued behind Leo. He supposed this was better than being executed in some way. Not paying attention however, he walked right into Leo.

“Why are you like this?” Leo sounded somewhat frustrated.

“I don’t know. I told you to kill me, even begged, but here we are,” Niles shrugged, avoiding eye contact.

Leo frowned. “Look at me,” he practically demanded that.

Niles groaned and finally made eye contact. Leo held the gaze for a while.

“You honestly prefer death?” Leo sounded hurt. Niles’ eye widened a little. It was as if he had kicked a puppy.

Suddenly gnarled roots and vines appeared out of the ground from beneath Niles’ feet, all surrounded in light. Before Niles could even ask what it was, he soon found himself tangled in roots and vines of a large tree, trapped.

“You gain the opportunity that anyone in your position would greatly appreciate and yet you still-!” A vine whipped around and held a thorn at Niles’ throat. “It can still be arranged!”

Niles held his tongue. He simply sighed and closed his eye, as if he accepted the situation he was in. Leo angrily retracted the vine and rather than kill him with it, he slapped him with it. Niles made a shocked sound.

“Consider this a warning,” Leo spoke through his teeth. The tree disappeared into the floor with another large flash of light. Niles fell directly onto the floor, unprepared for the tree to suddenly vanish. Leo grabbed a hold of Niles’ cape and pulled him directly upwards.

“I never want you to think that way or even say anything about wanting to die ever again. Even in utterances I don’t want or need you saying such things. Do I make myself clear?”

Niles stared at Leo in disbelief. He had no idea that Leo was this talented with magic, and straightforward.

Leo yanks his cape upward once more. “Do I make myself clear?” Leo practically spat through his teeth.

“Yes,” Niles said, defeated.

“Yes _what?_ ” Leo asked, still hostile.

“Yes milord,” Niles closed his eye and sighed.

Leo dropped Niles against the floor and closed his tome. “Now then,” he straightened up his clothes.

Leo turned around to see Niles still on the floor. “Get up.”

Niles promptly rose to his feet and patted his bum off. He nods meekly and continues to follow Leo.

The library was immense. It felt larger than anything Niles had ever lived in. In fact he never even thought he would ever live to see a room so big. There were at least twenty ten foot shelves filled to the brim with books.

“I thought that other room was a library,” Niles said quietly and meekly.

“That was more of a… study I suppose,” Leo replied. Leo then cleared his throat.

“Now forgive me for assuming but, you do know how to read correct?” Leo asked, trying to sound the least bit condescending.

Niles could hear the slight tinge of condescension from Leo’s voice. “Yes I know how to read. Would I be a skilled thief if I couldn’t?” Niles asked.

“Not very if you get caught in a castle. Well then again, neither were they,” Leo walked to the window and encouraged Niles to take a look.

Niles looked on in horror. His so called family were being executed publically in the castle courtyard.

“Is THIS why you brought me here?” He tried his best to keep his anger from being evident in his voice.

“Partly yes, and partly no.” Leo walked away from the window and picked up a few books.

“What do you mean ‘partly yes’?! Do you have any idea what they meant to me?!” Niles yelled.

“Well, clearly they didn’t feel the same way if they left you alone in the corridor. Think about it Niles, I care more for you than they do. Mainly because I actually kept you alive,” Leo set the books down on the table by the window.

Niles threw the nearest thing he could find at Leo, which was incidentally a candle. Leo easily avoided the object and it fell to the floor with a clang.

“You don’t know anything about it! They were my family! I never had an actual mother and father to look out for me. I didn’t grow up in a castle that has rooms bigger than anything I’ve ever lived in! Why would you show me this?” Niles had his fist clenched so tight he made his palms bleed.

Leo looked at Niles with no sense of sympathy. Niles slammed his fist into the stone wall and swore.

“Not everything in this castle is perfect Niles,” Leo flipped through a book. “That’s something I want to show you.” Leo placed the book down on the table, open to a page filled with pictures.

“What the hell is that?” Niles asked, still feeling angry with the young prince.

“It’s every single sibling I once had. My father had a lot of lovers so to speak, and let’s just say a lot of my family hasn’t exactly made it either. Xander, Camilla, Elise and I are what are left,” Leo then closed the book. “I don’t think you understand why I want you alive.”

“Yeah! I don’t! I begged you to kill me what kind of sadist are you when someone begs you to kill them and you don’t do it!” Niles slid the book off the table.

“Listen to me Niles!” Leo yells over Niles. “Don’t you get it? I see worth in you! More so than they ever did!” Leo pointed to the window along with his declaration. “I see someone who managed to get through countless guards in this castle only to make it to my study. Then you decide to give up?”

Niles fell silent. He gripped the table tightly.

“If I’m the only person that sees worth in you so be it. But you won’t be dying on my watch anytime soon,” Leo left a couple of books on the table for Niles to read while found a couple of tomes to study.

“Why?”

Leo looked from behind a bookshelf.

“Why now of all times do I have someone to believe in me,” Niles mutters to himself, looking at his blood hand. He laughed to himself sadly. He then placed a couple fingers on his eye patch.

Leo then dropped his books. He was the first person to ever believe in Niles.


	3. Third

The next few days were spent in silence.

Leo was used to his silent routine, going through the library and picking up some supplies from the study he used. Niles followed behind silently, trying to figure out how to do his job properly, but he was still incredibly bitter around the young prince. He never voiced his bitterness, but Leo very well knew it was there. The silence was almost deafening.

Niles sifted through a few books that Leo had given him, not really reading or paying much attention to them. He just stared at them blankly. He started to notice a few habits that Leo had while studying tomes. He would play with his hair; chew on the end of a quill pen when he was concentrating. Leo would even make humming sounds when he figured out a tough problem or tough part of the tome.

He couldn’t help but smile slightly. He’d never known something like this before. His entire life felt like a competition, or a game of survival and now, for once in his life, it didn’t feel like he was trudging along worried about whether or not he’d live to see another day. He was still embittered by the fact that he had begged Leo to kill him and he just wouldn’t do it, but as the days passed by he thought Leo made the right executive decision.

Leo looked up from his book to see Niles staring at him with a small smile.

“Niles?” Leo asked, closing his tome.

Niles made a small sound in reply, then released that he was staring at the young prince with the most stupid look on his face.

“M-My apologies,” he pulled the book he was looking at up over his eye so he was looking at it instead.

Leo snorted in response, which surprised Niles quite a bit.

“Rather improper isn’t it?” Niles teased.

“Come now, it’s not like I do that often,” Leo mused.

Leo let out a small sigh of relief. He feared that he had only pushed Niles away from what he offered him. The silence over the past few days had made him regret what he had said and done. He only tried to show Niles how valuable of a person he was to Leo, but his way of showing it was harsh and uncaring. He glanced at the purple, jewel encrusted tome across the table. The tome that had chosen him of all people, and he used it to threaten a person into being his retainer. What a prince he was.

Niles lowered his book to see Leo looking at the tome in anguish.

“Is something wrong?” It was his turn to ask.

“Oh. This?” Leo picked up the tome and showed it to Niles more closely.

“Yes. I’ve never seen anything like it,” Niles went to touch it, and Leo pulled it further out of his reach.

“I wonder if this is what your “friends” were after,” Leo said to himself, but Niles heard it.

“Well actually, they were after the crown,” Niles laughed sadly. “I knew it was suicide from the beginning but they never listened to me.”

“So you didn’t know of this?” Leo handed the tome to Niles this time, letting him get a closer look at it.

“No. This is the first time I’ve ever seen a tome like this,” Niles examined the cover carefully. It had a satin purple finish on the cover, encrusted with a bright pearl in the centre. Or was it an opal? He wasn’t sure. He’d never seen a precious gem stone for this long. The cover was decorated with black swirls which appeared to be drawn with ink, and the corners encased in silver.

“What kind of gem is in the centre?” he asked curiously.

“My sister seems to think it’s a dragon’s breath opal.” Niles could hear the joy in Leo’s voice.

“Aren’t those red?” Niles asked, a little embarrassed that he didn’t know the distinction.

“Some are. The raw form is red and blue. I don’t think there is a white dragon’s breath opal. I do applaud her imagination however, since we descend from dragons.”

“Oh right the dusk dragon,” Niles said, flipping through one of the books Leo gave him. He wanted to find the exact page that contained that history.

“Here,” Leo handed him another book that contained images of different types of gemstones.

“How do you have the attention span for so many books at once?” Niles asked meekly.

Leo chuckled to himself. “Not many people do. I may be the only one.”

Niles sifted through the book about gemstones and was mesmerized by all the different kinds. He’d only known ones that were purely Nohrian, like sapphires and emeralds. He had never seen amber or jade before, and longed to see it in person.

“Finally piqued your interest I see,” Leo said, picking up the history books to place them back on the shelves.

“I’m like a magpie. I really enjoy shiny things,” Niles laughed at his own joke. Leo couldn’t help but snicker a little as well.

“Come to think of it, a magpie once stole a ring of Camilla’s,” Leo gave Niles a joking look.

“Guilty as charged,” Niles laughed, putting his hands up in jest.

Leo couldn’t help but think that Niles’ jokes were placed a little too… soon. It had been less than a week since he got caught in the castle, nearly losing his life to the guards, because of some job that his so called comrades wanted to complete. He assumed the silence was simply Niles’ way of grieving but its as if he’s completely moved on in such a short period of time. Leo felt somewhat responsible, seeing as Niles confessed that Leo was the first person to ever give him faith, even if it was not to his face.

That reminded him; the eye patch.

Leo went to touch it himself and Niles retracted himself quite fast.

“Oh! My apologies,” Leo placed his hand on the table.

“No no,” Niles placed his hand on it. “I’m just a bit… sensitive when it comes to that.”

Leo sat back down and gave Niles a concerned look. Niles shot Leo a confused one in return.

“With all due respect milord, this is something that happened years ago,” he tried his best to remain positive for the young prince.

“May I see?”

Leo’s request sent an apprehensive shiver up Niles’ spine. He supposed that it would only be right for him to see, after all Leo was the reason Niles was still alive. He sighed heavily and removed the eye patch.

Leo was not prepared for what was underneath. He couldn’t help but let out a gasp in surprised horror.

“I won’t give you any further details but… let’s just say that it’s empty.”

Leo put a hand to his mouth, as if he was going to be sick from the thought of what happened. He had no idea that Niles was being serious when he said he didn’t have anyone to look out for him if this is something that happened.

“Now, I have an unrelated question,” Leo said, swallowing hard. “How does one without depth perception use a bow?” he tried his best to make himself sound humorous.

Niles smiled and gave Leo an expression as if he were to wink. Leo couldn’t help but smile at the other man. “I’m just gifted with a bow it seems.”

Niles put his eye patch back on and gave Leo a curious look. “And how does one as young as yourself have such immaculate skills in magic?”

“I guess I could use the same expression. Naturally gifted,” Leo smiled and picked up his tome. “This tome isn’t just special from the cover.”

Niles looked at Leo with a sense of interest in the beautifully decorated tome.

“It’s dubbed Brynhildr. It’s one of the five legendary weapons,” Leo sounded so proud to be showing off his tome.

“That’s amazing milord,” Niles said, with genuine awe. He gave Leo a little round of applause.

Leo smiled and did a little bow from his chair.

The two spent at least few hours laughing and studying a few tomes and books about Nohr. Niles couldn’t help but to begin to feel grateful that Leo saw enough value in him to keep him alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im having a lot of fun writing this thats why three chapters happened in one day. i hope you guys are enjoying this as much as I am


	4. Fourth

Most of what Niles was reading he already knew from living in the slums of Nohr. Some of what he was reading was new information, and some of it was misconstrued. He could tell that some information was changed to better suit those in power, and Leo thought it was disgusting that that had occurred. The two of them bonded over certain books, and argued over others. Then the idea of using magic came up in conversation.

“What do you mean?” Niles laughed it off, thinking that Leo’s idea was impossible.

“I still think it as a viable option, seeing as there are quite a few skills than can be learned from knowing how to use magic,” Leo grabbed an Ember off the shelf and handed it to Niles. “This is the most basic tome, I can try and teach you how to use it.”

“Don’t I need some sort of seal in order to use this?” Niles asked, still sounding apprehensive.

“No. Simply by observing you I can tell you have natural skill for magic,” Leo grabbed his Brynhildr and started to make his way down to the courtyard. Niles stood dumbfounded in the library for a while before realizing that Leo was serious.

“Come now, we have some work to do.”

                                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

Trying to use a tome was exhausting for Niles. He was struggling to even summon a single flame let alone a barrage like the tome intended. Leo, however, was being incredibly patient with him which was something Niles wasn’t expecting.

“With all due respect milord,” he began breathily and shakily. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to do this. I might as well just stick to a bow.”

Leo sighed and gently took the tome from him. He gave Niles a sympathetic look and handed him a glass of water.

“Where- no wait when?” Niles asked incoherently.

“Does it matter?” Leo asked with a smile.

Niles couldn’t help but blush at Leo’s smile. He then felt the need to douse himself in the water entirely. Leo looked at him do the stupid action with a blank look on his face.

“You idiot, do you intend to freeze out here?” Leo took off his cloak and wrapped it around the taller man’s shoulders. “It’s at least 5 below!”

“My apologies milord I don’t know what came over me,” Niles said, running his fingers through his wavy, white hair so that that water wouldn’t drip on his face.

Leo felt the urgency to rush him inside close to a fireplace. Leo struggled to start it, fumbling matches and dropping tinder. Niles noticed this, and stood up to assist the smaller man. Leo was probably colder than Niles, seeing as his frame was much smaller than Niles’ was.

“Here, allow me,” Niles said, taking the matches from Leo gently. Leo couldn’t help but feel heat flush to his face from Niles’ tone. It was so gentle and sweet. Leo backed up and let Niles start the fire. With a large fwoosh the flames danced to life, and warmth started to emanate into the room.

“Seems I learned that tome after all,” Niles smiled and stepped back away from the fire. Leo stepped closer to the fire and warmed up his hands. He smiled at Niles.

“So you did.”

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

“You said you were good with a bow, correct?” Leo asked, looking up from his book for a moment.

Niles, who had been half asleep, snorted awake at the sound of Leo’s voice. “Hhuh what?”

Leo rolled his eyes in response to the lack of Niles’ attention. “You said you were good with a bow.”

“You saw me with a bow milord, I never said anything about being good at it,” Niles then yawned.

Leo smirked. “As I recall you told me you had natural born talent with a bow.”

“Did I say that? No way,” Niles added, sarcastically with a grin. Leo laughed at his comment.

Leo closed his book and pulled an iron bow from under the table, quiver and all.

“Milord, how long has that been there?” Niles asked out of genuine curiosity.

“I had someone forge it. I was afraid that bow that you left in my study would be taken for evidence in the court. So I figured a new one was in order,” Leo placed the intricately carved weapon on the table.

“You got that engraved for me too,” Niles muttered to himself taking a closer look at the bow. It had a sapphire in the centre and wood carved with intricate, traditional markings.

“Well, as you serve royalty I thought your weapon of choice deserved an upgrade,” Leo smiled from across the table.

“The sapphire was a nice touch,” Niles' smirk only grew.

“Well, since you were eyeing Brynhildr so much and made such a remark about the opal in the centre, I decided your weapon should at least match mine. Think of it as a mark of pride,” Leo said, patting the cover of his legendary tome.

Niles got up from his chair and bowed before Leo. “Thank you milord.”

Leo, having never had a retainer before, wasn’t exactly sure how to react to the situation and tugged on Niles’ hood for him to stand up quickly. When Niles raised his head, he noticed that the young prince was bright red in colour.

“Well then,” Niles smirked at him.

“I’m not exactly used to this Niles. You’re the first retainer I’ve ever had.”

Niles’ heart practically jumped into his throat when he heard Leo say that. “What do you mean I’m the first? Surely the king assigned you some before me milord,” Niles laughed.

“I’m serious Niles,” he took the other man’s hand. “You’re the first retainer I’ve ever had. Sure my father tried to assign me some but I declined. I wanted to choose them on my own.”

He held a look of disbelief for a good minute before Leo spoke again. “Are you alright?”

“Y-Yes milord I’m just extremely surprised. I must mean quite a bit,” Niles scratched the back of his head, feeling rather bashful.

“Niles. You’re a treasure to me,” Leo cupped Niles’ face with his hands.  He blushed immediately.

“You are proving to be so much more than an ordinary retainer. I’m so glad I chose you.”

Niles could feel all bitter feelings he had for Leo not obeying his request to kill him a couple of weeks ago melt away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LET THE SHIPPYNESS BEGIN. As you can tell by now i prefer short chapters with a lot of content. Its rather a la maximum ride and i apologize for that hahah ^^;;;
> 
> I'm going to say this now. The next chapter may contain elements of abuse. Just as a warning so I don't end up spoiling anything in the tags.


	5. Fifth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> like i said in the previous chapter, ABUSE WARNING

Niles discovered that castle life wasn’t all what it seemed to be.

It was dark in the castle even before sundown. Niles was used to navigating through complete darkness; his sight was excellent in the dark. Not knowing where anything in the castle was, however, was something he was he found to be difficult. He only really knew where the library and Leo’s little study were. He found his way to the courtyard; the moons light practically guided him. He looked up to see a full moon in a sky filled to the brim with stars. He was lost in it for a good minute. He loved the moon. It was more valuable to him than the sun ever was.

A yell tore Niles from staring at the moon. He looked up at a lit window on the second story. It sounded like a woman but Niles knew that window was the library, where Leo usually was. He ran as fast as he could up the stairs and burst through the doors.

“Milord is everything ok-“ he was caught off guard by a woman in the room.

She was tall and slender, much like how Leo was. Her hair was blonde and curly. It only reached her shoulders. Her eyes were the same colour as Leo’s: a dark maroon colour. His eye then darted to Leo, who had a large red mark on the side of his face. The pieces then clicked together.

This woman was Leo’s so called mother.

“Leo what is the meaning of this?” she yelled, shrill and unkind. She then pointed at Niles rather accusingly.

“Like I told you before, I chose him to be my retainer,” Leo tried his best to remain confident in front of this woman. She then struck him with her hand, strong enough to knock the young prince over. Niles immediately ran to Leo’s side, out of instinct rather than duty.

“Stay out of this!” the woman shrieked, pulling Niles’ hood to tear him away from her son. He shot her a filthy look, removed his hood and helped Leo stand back up. His heart sank when the woman reached for the candelabra.

Niles took hold of the object just as the woman was about to swing it down to hit her son. His determination made protecting Leo all the more easy.

“I told you to stay out of this, knave!” She shook Niles’ hand off the candelabra.  Niles picked up the smaller man and rushed him out of her reach. She was furious.

“I won’t have you harming Lord Leo,” Niles declared, holding Leo close to him. Leo was too shocked to register what Niles had done. He was just thankful he didn’t get hit with the heavy brass object.

Angrily, she lit the book Leo was looking at with the candelabra. Niles set Leo down gently on a chair, then rushed to put out the flames. If he couldn’t save that one book, it didn’t matter. The whole library was an entirely different case. The woman then left the room, tossing the candelabra onto the floor with disdain. She wanted to set the library alight but Niles wouldn’t allow it. He stamped out the flames as quickly as he could. The only light left in the room was the moonlight that leaked in through the thin windows.

Leo meekly stood up and placed a hand on Niles’ shoulder. Niles looked up, worriedly.

“I’m sorry about all that,” Leo said quietly, a hand on his cheek where he had been hit.

Niles stood up promptly and placed his hands gently on both of Leo’s shoulders. “Please don’t apologize milord. None of that was your fault,” Niles could see the look of hurt in Leo’s eyes.

Leo gently moved Niles’ hands off his shoulders. He tried to avoid eye contact the best he could.

“I think I should be retiring to my quarters for the evening,” Leo said quietly.

“Here I can escort you ther-“ Niles was cut off by Leo raising his hand.

“No need,” Leo then turned around and left the library without another word.

Niles had never felt like more of a failure in his entire life.

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

Leo hadn’t left his room in a week.

Niles sat outside the door quietly, as if on guard in case that woman wanted to return and make matters worse. He didn’t even think twice about guarding a door locked from the inside.

 He felt awful for getting lost in the castle that night when the situation could have been avoided. He gripped the bow Leo had given him tighter. He thought he didn’t deserve it.

He then knocked on Leo’s door, then placed an ear against it. He could hear Leo shuffle inside the room. Doing what he hadn’t the foggiest, but at least he knew that Leo was okay.

“Milord?” he called out, somewhat sad.

The door unlocked.

Leo opened it slightly and looked at Niles with such sad eyes. Niles wedged his foot into the opening in case Leo wanted to close the door on him. He was worried and nothing was going to stop Niles from seeing if Leo was truly okay.

“I’m sorry for my absence and silence,” Leo sighed.

Niles sighed and gave Leo a sad smile. “I’m here to serve you milord. Even in times like this.” He hesitated to place his hand on Leo’s face reassuringly. He was afraid of how Leo would react.

“I know,” Leo fully opened the door. “Forgive me for being selfish about this.”

Niles lightly rested his forehead against Leo’s. “No apologies. None of this is or ever will be your fault.”

Leo hugged onto his retainer and rested his cheek against Niles’ chest. Niles then returned the hug, feeling as though he had been given permission.

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

“One thing I must show you,” Leo said, placing a hand on a book within his quarters. Niles watched Leo carefully, as it appeared that Leo was showing him something secretive and important.

Leo then pulled the book and a secret staircase was revealed from behind the bookshelf. Niles was astounded. He knew Leo was talented in magic, but this brilliant to create secret passage ways to move around the castle underneath his mother and father’s noses.

“When one is in a situation such as mine, you improvise,” Leo stepped into the secret passage and encouraged Niles to follow. Niles followed quietly and walked with light feet.

“As you know my door remains locked from the inside. It’s not that I hide secrets within my quarters,” Leo paused, and returned the wall panel to its previous position. “It’s just I don’t want unwanted guests.”

“Is there anyone else that knows about these passages?” Niles asked, tracing the walls with one hand.

“Yes. My siblings know of it. Xander just doesn’t know about my situation with my mother,” Leo lit the candelabra with a small flame he had made himself.

“Ever consider having her,” Niles paused and leaned in close to Leo’s ear. “ _Taken care of_?”

Leo sighed to himself. Niles got the hint immediately. He had already considered that himself. The risks were just too great.

“I could do it for you if need be,” Niles offered.

Leo stopped dead in his tracks, and Niles walked right into him almost knocking the poor man down the stairs.

“I cannot afford to lose you Niles please don’t think so foolishly.”

Niles felt a twinge of sadness in his heart at the sound of Leo’s tone. It was frightened at the idea.

“I know you can sneak around quite well, but I cannot bear the thought of what happens if you get caught,” Leo turned around and looked Niles in the eye.

Niles almost collapsed from the look Leo gave him. It was filled to the brim with sadness and anxiety at the thought of Leo losing him.

A light breeze blew out the candles.  


	6. Sixth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More Mom not being so Mom

The secret passageways were vast in size, and seemed to go to everywhere in the castle. Niles thought it was impossible for Leo to construct all this on his own.

“Didn’t you read the books I gave you? One of them mentioned these secret passageways,” Leo shone the candle light on the door to the courtyard. He pushed it open and it revealed the moon lit courtyard. He blew out the candle and set the candelabra inside the passageways and closed the door behind them.  

“Wait does your mother know about the passageways if they’re in a book?” Niles asked, trying to mask his concern.

“You have a good point, but I keep the book hidden,” Leo crossed his arms. “I leave it in my room most of the time.” He smiled as if to tell Niles not to worry.

Niles sighed and looked up at the moon, now in its third quarter. He then sighed happily.

“I take it you love the night sky?” Leo asked, nudging Niles with his elbow.

“It’s the moon milord,” Niles replied, smiling at Leo. Leo then looked up at the moon and chuckled to himself.

“For me it’s the stars,” Leo said, looking to the other side of the sky. Niles turned and looked at the stars, drowning slightly in the moon’s light.

“I know all the constellations off by heart,” Leo said, smiling.

Niles could even hear the joy in Leo’s voice whenever he talked about something he loved. Leo then leaned his head against Niles’ shoulder, somewhat startling the poor man in the process.

“My apologies!” Leo yelled, putting a hand to his chest in surprise.

“No no milord, I should be the one to apologize I-“ he paused for a moment. Leo was blushing. Did he notice that Niles was too?

It wasn’t obvious in the moonlight, however. So perhaps Leo wouldn’t notice.

Leo then cleared his throat and looked back up at the stars, occasionally pointing out important ones to Niles.

“You see that red one at the top corner of Orion?” Leo asked, pointing directly at it.

“Mm? What about it?” Niles asked.

“Its named Betelgeuse, which means the hand of Orion,” he smiled.

“Wait a minute, why is it the hand if that star is supposedly the armpit of Orion?” Niles asked, smirking a little.

Leo looked dumbfounded. “Niles, you’re an archer. I’m surprised you’re asking me that.”

“Oh right Orion is supposed to be an archer. So the hand being by the armpit makes more sense,” Niles said, putting his index finger to his chin in thought.

Leo chuckled to himself quietly.

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

Niles spent the next few days in the library with Leo, studying star maps. He had never been more infatuated with the sky until now. He knew the moon’s patterns off by heart, since he adored it to begin with. He knew the phases and when they would appear during the month. Considering his previous job, being under the glow of the full moon wasn’t exactly the best cover.

Leo looked up from his tome and smirked at the other man. He had never seen someone so fascinated with stars.

“I swear you’ve looked at all those maps ten times over,” Leo closed his tome and stood up to see the maps spread out on the table.

“I want to be a master of the night sky,” Niles’ smile had never been so bright.

“So you intend to memorize those maps?” Leo asked, tracing the compass across the paper. “Even the one that’s of stars we cannot see?”

Niles looked up at Leo in confusion.

“This is the map of the southern hemisphere Niles. We cannot see these stars. Capricorn barely reaches our horizon.”

Niles blushed out of embarrassment. He had been looking at the wrong map the entire time.

“Here,” Leo handed him a tome and another map.

“What’s the tome for?” Niles asked, pulling it off the table.

“Its called Moonlight. Think of it more as a keepsake,” Leo smiled.

Niles smiled back and opened up the map. It began to look a lot more familiar. He felt like a fool for looking at the wrong one, but managed to laugh it off.

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

The pleasantries didn’t last that long.

Niles spent some of his nights gazing out windows, trying to memorize some of the star patterns in the sky. However, he stayed close to Leo’s side in case his mother decided to make an unwanted appearance. He had noticed her lurking through the halls as of late, as if she was keeping tabs on Leo’s routines. Something about her movements and constant following didn’t sit right.

Something about her skulking didn’t bode.

Leo noticed Niles’ tension quite a bit when he spent time in the library, which was nearly a daily activity.

“Is something wrong Niles?” he asked, bringing it up delicately.

Niles stayed quiet, staring at the large wooden door.

“Niles? I’m talking to you,” He said, a bit more firmly.

Niles looked down at Leo, sitting at the desk. Leo’s face was hard to read. It was a mix of concern and frustration, but Niles just wasn’t sure.

“Yes milord?” He responded.

“Is something wrong,” It was no longer a question. It sounded more like an order.

“Just something I’ve observed,” Niles tried to pass it off as nothing for Leo to be worried about.

“And what have you observed?” Leo asked, raising an eyebrow at the older man.

Niles shook his head and looked out the window. The sky was grey and filled with clouds; typical of Nohr really.  For summer it was miserable. Raining almost every other day, and it was always bitterly cold. It was no wonder Nohr’s economy depended almost solely on trading with other nations.

“Say milord,” Niles moved away from the window and sat down at the desk, eye still on the door. “Who’s Nohr’s biggest trading partner?”

Leo was shocked at his question. “Hoshido is the closest but as of late relations with that nation have turned sour,” Leo said, then scoffed. “Who am I kidding? Relations with that nation have always been sour.”

“Are there any others?” Niles asked, flipping through a random book Leo had thrown onto the table.

“Archanea,” Leo said, closing his book. “But father cut ties with them years ago.”

There was a bang on the door. Niles immediately stood up and stared it down. Leo instinctively slid underneath the desk.

Niles felt his heart sink.

The door burst open. The lock had been picked with a dagger.

Leo reached up for Niles’ hand from underneath the table. He looked down to see Leo under the table, an opened hatch beside him. Leo’s expression was unlike anything Niles had ever seen in him: fear.

“Come quickly!” his voice was hushed.

Niles slipped underneath the table before he was noticed by the woman entering the room.

“You first milord,” Niles whispered, ushering Leo into the compartment.

“No, what about you?” Leo asked, his voice practically trembling.

“Your safety is paramount. I knew she’d do something like this,” Niles said, practically shoving Leo onto the steps.

Before Leo could argue, Niles had closed the hatch and the knife made contact with the table.

The last thing Leo saw was Niles’ smile before being swallowed in darkness within the passageway.


	7. Seventh

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> VIOLENCE IS START

Leo pounded his hands against the trapdoor until they were bruised. He screamed for Niles to open the door until his throat was raw. He demanded, and ordered but there was no sound from above. He feared the worst.

He didn’t want to leave Niles alone with that unpredictable woman, but if it meant Leo left unscathed…

No, he couldn’t think like that. Niles was his treasure. One of the best people he ever found in his life, and now he could be gone forever.

Alone in the darkness, Leo felt around to find a candelabra in a cranny he had left there from previous escapes. He lit it with a match he had left with it. He couldn’t use magic so willy nilly to light a candle.

He wandered through the labyrinth for a while, thinking about what Niles was doing, and if he was okay. Doubt was eating away at him, but he knew that Niles knew what he was doing. His previous life was all about survival of the fittest. He was skilled, extremely skilled. Leo knew it was wrong to doubt but he couldn’t help but feel it worm its way into Leo’s state of mind.

Wandering around with distracting thoughts led Leo to an area he was unfamiliar with. He looked around at the branching paths. The panic started to set in quick. He was somewhere underneath the castle, and the castle itself was built into a giant crater.

 “Scheiße,“ Leo muttered to himself, looking at the markings he left on the walls.

The markings were more like scratches. He had constructed most of the secret passageways using magic, and some of them were more confusing than useful.

“Niles you better not be dead,” his voice broke towards the end of his sentence.

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

The knife made contact with the wooden desk as Niles closed the hatch. It penetrated the wood completely, meaning the knife was more than just a regular dagger.

It was long enough that it cut the string of Niles’ eye patch. It fell off as he rolled out from underneath the table, reaching underneath his cloak to grab a knife of his own; curved for its wielder.

“You want to fucking go?” He said, expecting someone else to be prying the knife out of the table. The person was a hired assassin, Niles could tell by his clothes. It seemed that Leo’s mother didn’t have the stones to do anything herself.

“Well then,” he tossed the knife into his other hand. “This was definitely unexpected.” He pointed the blade at the other man, struggling to get his knife out of the table. It was evident that he was scared by the frantic nature of his tugging.

In one swift motion, Niles pulled the assassin’s hand off the knife, tossed the knife aside and placed his arm uncomfortably on his back, knocking the man over in the process. He then held his own knife to the assassin’s throat.

“Who hired you?” Niles asked through his teeth, practically spitting on the smaller man’s ear.

Not a word. Niles got a good look at this man and knew that he wasn’t Hoshidan. Blonde hair didn’t really scream the nationality. He removed the assassin’s scarf, which hid his identity.

“So, what made you come back?” Niles scoffed. This was one of his so called former allies.

“I-I don’t know what you mean Niles! We, hahah, we came back for you!” the assassin tried his best to sound convincing. Niles, however, was not buying it.

“Bullshit, you left me for dead,” He seethed, pressing the knife closer and deeper into the younger man’s skin.

“S-Slander! Lies and slander I swear!” Panic was starting to set in. Niles grinned at the younger man’s suffering.

“Tell me who hired you,” Niles’ tone was deadly serious.

“L-Lady Anne-Marie!” the younger man yelled out.

After hearing the information he needed, Niles slit the other man’s throat with little hesitation. Blood managed to fly at least halfway across the room and onto a few of the books on the lower parts of the shelves. Niles cursed to himself. He never meant to make a mess.

He picked up the body, thinking of how to dispose of it. He knew that if the castle guard found a random corpse in the library, things would not look good for him. Especially if Leo was somewhere in the tunnels he had constructed. He opened the hatch to provide some light for Leo to see in the tunnels.

He thought about leaving it in the tunnels, but the rotting body would cause some commotion and Leo’s tunnels would be found out and investigated.

Suddenly there were several footsteps running towards the library.

 


	8. Eighth

The doors were burst open by several guards, and those guards pointed their spears at Niles without hesitation. Being a former criminal, they didn’t trust him as far as they could throw him. The shock was still running through his entire body as he was backed up against the wall. Xander then entered the room.

The eldest prince of Nohr was intimidating on a normal day for Niles, but the current circumstances made the sweat on Niles’ forehead freeze.

“Where is Leo?” His voice was booming through the large room.

“H-He escaped milord,” Niles was half-heartedly hoping that Xander knew about the tunnels.

“Where to?” Xander turned his attention to the body on the floor.

“H-He…” Niles didn’t want to give the location of the tunnels away to the guards. He knew that if the guards knew where the tunnels were, they could tell one of the many concubines in the castle and a disaster could occur.

Xander’s attention then turned to the hatch, camouflaged into the floor. A look of relief washed over his face. He turns to Niles and nodded.

“Stand down,” he told the guards, and they lowered their spears. He immediately ordered them to leave the library, and they obeyed without a second thought.

Niles could feel his heartbeat move out of his throat and back down to where it was supposed to be.

“I must say, you are definitely good at your job,” Xander said, kicking the body on the floor.

“W-Well... can’t say that I was meant for it to be honest,” Niles avoided eye contact.

Xander’s stare was harsh. Its as if that man had his brow permanently furrowed. Niles found it hard to maintain eye contact considered he just killed a man on royal grounds.

“It was good of you to keep that a secret,” Xander pointed at the hatch underneath the table.

“Lord Leo did made me swear to never tell a soul,” A lie, but Niles knew it was something that shouldn’t be spread around like a rumor in the slums.

“That seems very unlike him,” Xander reopened the hatch which had been haphazardly closed when the copious amounts of guards entered the room. He smiled at Niles. “Who knew that a former outlaw could keep my little brother safe like this?”

“He found interest in me,” Niles shrugged sheepishly. He wasn’t very accustomed to talking to royalty, since Leo only ever corrected him when a title wasn’t used.

Xander sighed. “I will never understand why he and Camilla decided to make former criminals their retainers…” Niles couldn’t help but feel that as an insult directed at him.

“I’ll dispose of this miscreant,” Xander said, standing up to face Niles directly. “I want you to go down there and find my little brother.”

“Of course,” Niles nodded and rushed down into the tunnels.

Xander removed the scarf from the assassin’s face and used it to cover the body. Despite his duty he still felt it necessary to respect it.

*             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *            

Leo decided he was better off sitting in one spot rather than wandering aimlessly through the intricate underground passageway. His candles were getting low, and panic was starting to fill his mind. He feared that the assassin may have killed the only retainer he’s ever known. Just a retainer? No, he was more than that.

Much more than that.

The candles finally reached their limit and dimmed quickly. Leo’s heart began to race. The last thing he wanted was to be stuck in the darkness. He had never minded it before, but this was a reason to fear it. He could always use Brynhildr to guide him through the darkness, but that had only ever worked once.

As darkness hit, Leo closed his eyes and hugged his knees close to his chest.

“I’m going to die down here. I’m going to just… die down here,” He whispered to himself.

No matter how mature he made himself appear, he was still just a child shy of thirteen. He thought in all honesty that he could make adult decisions and do things on his own but no. This was clear evidence that he still needed to have his hand held through the next few years.

It was almost as if defeat had stared him in the face and told him it was all over. He wanted nothing more than to detach himself from his mother and father and gain his own independence, but this was evidence he couldn’t yet.

The inferiority he felt was almost like drowning. He had so much to live up to. His siblings were paying much more attention to that _other_ child than him. Hell she wasn’t even related by blood. His jealousy stemmed from the inferiority he felt from the attention she was given. Much more than he had ever received.

In that tunnel he was angry and he was afraid. He tried to think of other things to keep his mind at ease. Rather than dwell on all his problems, he could have hope that someone was going to come into the tunnels and save him. He couldn’t see light in either direction so to him, all hope was lost.

That was until a flame flickered to his right.

The light caught him by surprise, and he automatically feared the worst.

In his current state of mind he thought that the assassin found the tunnel. Leo stood up and pulled Brynhildr out from under his arm. He hadn’t dared to open it, since the light would give away his location.

However, a voice caused him to drop his guard.

“Milord? Where are you?” Niles called out waving that familiar candelabra around to see where he was going.

Leo dropped his tome and ran.

“I’m here! I’m here!” Leo’s voice sounded like it could break at any moment.

Niles sighed out of relief and rushed in the direction of Leo’s voice.

Leo practically tackled the man to the ground with a hug. He gripped onto Niles tight and shoved his face into the fabric of Niles’ shirt.

It took Niles a few seconds to realize that Leo was crying.

“I-I thought you were going to die! I was terrified!” Leo yelped, muffled by Niles’ shirt.

Niles set down the candelabra on a ledge and hugged Leo just as tight for reassurance.

“Have you really that little faith in me milord? I’m insulted,” Niles tried his best to sound humorous for the young prince.

Leo punched Niles’ back lightly and his sobs turned into laughter shortly afterwards. “You’re right. I do have too little faith in you.”

Niles grinned and ran his fingers through Leo’s hair to soothe him. After a moment, Leo had regained his composure.

“My apologies… it’s unlike me to be so…” he paused. “Fearful.”

Niles picked up the candelabra. “Its fine milord. Having assassins sent after you is scary business. You have every right to be scared,” Niles shrugged. “But you don’t have to be as scared as you once were with me around. I’ll do some digging and find out who’s sending them and where they are going to go. My utmost priority is keeping you safe,” He smiled.

Leo felt overwhelmed at this. He had never known anyone other than his siblings that wished to protect him like this.

“Niles… I don’t know what to say,” Leo sounded flabberghasted as he went to retrieve his tome.

“This is what you hired me for isn’t it? Of course I’m going to be good at my job. Maybe it is I that has taken interest in you now,” Niles laughed.

“Maybe so,” Leo smiled in response.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay i will try not to leave huge ass breaks now. My life kinda went BLUP for a while so look forward to more frequent updates.


	9. Ninth

Routines were dull after a couple months.

Niles kept close guard over Leo while his mother was still roaming the castle. Lady Anne-Marie was not a force to be reckoned with he discovered. He tried to organize an assassination, but he was smart enough to find out it could lead back to him with ease. He didn’t want to jeopardize his position by acting foolishly.

Niles had been reading some interesting books in the library while Leo continued to study more complex tomes. Brynhildr felt like a crutch at times, and he wanted to learn more complex spells for the future. To prove his worth.

“Niles what are you looking at?” Leo asked, peeking over his tome to see the other man studying carefully.

“Hrm. Maps of sorts. Just trying to see what passages are known to assassins and whatnot etcetera etcetera,” Niles waved his hand to advise Leo to continue what he was doing.

“You’re really taking this seriously,” Leo placed his tome down on the table and walked over to look over Niles’ shoulder.

Niles made a sound in agreement and began scribbling something indistinguishable. Leo frowned at the other man’s penmanship.

“Planning something?” Leo sounded suspicious.

“Oh come on, nothing illegal,” he closed the book and continued to write.

Leo frowned. “You’re not still planning to kill her are you?”

Niles froze. He had thought about it but had since stopped. The thought was still in the back of his mind.

“Milord…” he paused. “I do realize it’s a foolish decision since it could be traced right back to me. That’s the reason why you haven’t done it, am I right?” His eye darted in Leo’s direction.

“It’s… It’s not like me to be like that,” Leo avoided eye contact. He had considered it a few times.

“You’re a terrible liar,” Niles sighed and put his pen down.

Leo looked insulted. Niles stood up from his chair and looked at the young prince with a look of disdain.

“Come with me for a second,” Niles said, cueing Leo to follow.

“S-Since when were you giving the orders!” Leo exclaimed, revealing again how much of a child he could be.

Niles grinned. The way he riled up Leo gave him some kind of sick satisfaction. Not like he would rile him up often but it was nice to see the more human side of the prince every now and then.

“It wasn’t an order milord, more of a suggestion,” he grabbed Leo’s shoulders and moved him a couple of inches to the left.

Suddenly an arrow flew through the glass of the window and landed on the floor with a clang. Leo looked on in horror as the arrow made contact with the floor.

“A good suggestion mind you,” Niles grinned. He then grabbed his bow from under the table and the arrow that had been fired. It was still in good condition and could be used again. His smile twisted. Nothing better than hitting an enemy with their own weapon.

He lined up the shot carefully, trying to avoid the sight of the enemy. Clearly a sniper with that deadly accuracy. Leo felt it necessary to hide behind a bookshelf. The things were massive enough to hide him out of the sight of the sniper.

Niles fired the arrow quickly without much of a second thought. He waited a couple of minutes and nothing else came flying through the glass. He glanced through the window to see some guards rushing to that area. They lifted up a body and walked off.

“This is what I was researching milord. Knowing the towers that have easy bow access to this room is very important,” he set his bow on the table, and then peeked around the bookshelf. Leo was sitting on the floor with a book over his head.

“You’re okay now milord,” Niles said, soothingly. He delicately took the book from atop Leo’s head and placed it back on the shelf. Leo looked up at him, with large, teary, maroon eyes.

Niles kneeled beside the young prince and wrapped an arm around him for security.

“Has this not happened much before?” He asked quietly. Leo silently shook his head.

“M-My mother always just used me as a political tool. So I assumed that she would never harm me in any way since it harms her chances of becoming the new queen,” Leo’s voice was shaky.

Niles sighed and hugged Leo closer to him. “I did promise to keep you safe didn’t I?”

Leo nodded, trying his hardest to hold tears back.

“I can see why she’s doing what she’s doing from a political stand point, but that doesn’t mean I agree with her actions,” Niles sighed, leaning into the bookshelf behind him.

“I’m scared of dying Niles.”

The words that came out of Leo’s mouth sounded like they ached. At one point Niles had been very afraid of death himself. It was this vast emptiness of the unknown that lingered in the back of his mind. In his old life, dying was a very real threat. Something from cutting himself on glass by accident to looking at someone the wrong way could lead to some lethal consequences.

“You’re not going to die,” Niles pulled Leo closer into a proper hug. Leo didn’t hesitate to be wrapped up in his arms.

Niles held Leo close for a good while, hand at the back of his head for comfort. The darkness of the library began to swallow them quickly as the candles burnt out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKay so some more... things are gonna happen in the next chapter as far as violence go. Lets just say in the mean time that Iago is a nasty SOB.


	10. Tenth

Niles learned that Garon did not keep good company around.

Iago was the king’s tactician; a grim sorcerer who looked as if he was a walking corpse. He was so slender and pale; it was as if he was in a constant state of decay.

Leo hated the other mages in the castle. Zola was manipulative with his magic of illusions, and Iago was another story completely.

There was a taboo known among dark mages in Nohr. Necromancy was a known law that could not be broken. Not only was it morally wrong, but there were usually some nasty side effects that followed a summoning. Judging by how dead Iago looked half the time, Niles could put two and two together pretty quickly.

Faceless were Nohr’s most valuable soldiers since they were easily replaceable. That and they didn’t feel the overwhelming desire to stop fighting when they reached the Hoshido boarder. The undead couldn’t feel anything at all, and that’s what made them disposable yet valuable.

And the only way one could obtain them was through magic.

Iago stopped Leo on his usual trek to the library with a devious smile on his face. Niles remained on guard during the entire conversation.

“Little Lord Leo, good morning to you,” Iago’s voice sounded like flies buzzing around a corpse.

Leo ignored the sorcerer and continued to walk. He signalled Niles to follow.

Iago cleared his throat obnoxiously as if signalling Leo to pause, but he continued walking.

Iago stood in the prince’s way and Leo looked up at the sickly man with a look of disdain.

“Now listen here,” Iago’s voice was still sick, and gravelly.

Leo avoided eye contact and looked down at the ground. Iago grabbed the young prince’s wrist and yanked it up in the air viciously. Leo let out a yelp at the action, Iago’s nails digging into Leo’s skin.

Niles acted immediately, but Iago held up a hand to stop the man in his tracks.

Leo grimaced at Iago as he brought his face closer to the young mage. “You know what you need to do for me. I won’t have you letting that filthy criminal interfere. Order him to leave you alone for the next few hours, alright?”

Leo struggled to get his wrist out of Iago’s grip, but the sorcerer held on like a vice.

“Now Leo,” He practically spat.

“Niles I-I need you to go to the library without me today, okay?” Leo’s voice shook.

Niles shook his head in response. “No, something isn’t right.”

“Niles,” Leo’s voice was still filled with doubt.

Niles sighed. He couldn’t turn down an order no matter how much his heart told him to. “Yes milord.”

He turned to walk towards the library, looking back at Leo with sadness in his expression.

He would never forget the fear in Leo’s eyes when he gave him the order to leave him be.

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

The hours went by like centuries. Niles tried his best to keep himself preoccupied in a book that Leo had recommended to him, but it was hard. Worry still resided in his mind. He had read the same sentence at least fifteen times, not absorbing the contents what so ever.

He sighed and closed the book. There was no way he was going to get anywhere in that book. He looked at the divot in the table, left by the assassin’s knife. He sighed as he placed a couple fingers on it.

“I can’t believe I’m being serious about this damn job,” he laughed to himself. “I’m just an overpaid babysitter.”

He sat back down in his chair. “At least I’m getting paid?” he shrugged to himself, looking out the window into the darkness. “Beats living on the streets, look at this place!”

He laughed a bit more. “Wow I’m a crazy man in a library talking to myself,” He covered his face in shame.

“You’re not crazy. I’m glad you followed my order.”

Niles nearly fell out of his chair. “Oh gods please don’t tell me you heard all of that.”

Leo shrugged. “I knew you weren’t very serious about this in the beginning anyways. You aren’t telling me things I don’t know.”

Something was wrong. The way Leo walked was not right. He appeared to be limping slightly, and he was a lot paler than normal. As soon as he walked into the candle light he could see it.

“You were incredibly bitter the first month. I don’t blame you. You ask this pompous kid to kill you and then he doesn’t? Ha what a joke right?”

Something was definitely wrong.

“I’m glad you think the pay is good. It does beat living dangerously. Even if being my personal babysitter is proving to be a lot more dangerous than you once thought.”

“Milord, are you okay?” Niles stood up from his chair, looking at the young prince with worry.

Soon after, Leo collapsed to the floor. Niles ran as fast as he could to the young man, knocking his chair over.

“What did he do to you?” Niles asked, his voice hushed.

“Why does it matter?” Leo’s voice was strained. As he tried to stand, Niles offered his hand. Leo pushed it aside and stood up on his own.

“You’re just an overpaid babysitter right? You don’t have to do anything other than watch me,” Leo sounded hurt.

“Look, I was just muttering nonsense to myself milord, it meant nothing,” Niles stood up fast, trying to explain himself.

“I don’t want to hear it. If you want to go then just go,” Leo turned towards the door. “I guess I was wrong and everyone else was right.”

“No! They weren’t! You’re a genius milord. How on earth would they be right and you wrong? When HAVE you been wrong?” Niles never meant to hurt Leo like this. “I’m just a cynical idiot with a dumb view on life. I never thought anything happened by chance or it would ever be good for me. Milord you’re probably the best thing that’s ever happened to me!”

He worded that wrong. But in that moment it was enough to get his point across. He had thought about the young man in a romantic light before but he knew it would be impossible and pushed those feelings aside. That and there was a six year age gap between the two which made things feel wrong.

Leo turned around to face Niles. “ _I’m_ the best thing?”

“Well… You spared me at a low moment. Gods now that I think about it its because of you that I’m still here. If I had run into anyone els-“

“Yes I know. They wouldn’t have thought twice. Even without the request,” Leo looked down at the floor. There was a bit of heat in his face that he didn’t want to become evident. He had taken it the way that Niles meant it.

“Back to the matter at hand though milord,” Niles walked over to the young prince. “Are you alright? What did that nasty son of a bitch do to you?”

“Nothing. He did nothing,” Leo replied.

Niles scanned the young man for bruises or cuts. When he didn’t find anything, he was relieved.

That was until Leo began to cough up blood.

 

 


	11. Eleventh

Blood hit the floor at the same time that Niles’ heart dropped into his shoes.

“Milord!” He yelled, catching the young man as he collapsed once more.

“I didn’t lie to you Niles,” his voice sounded so broken up.

“What did he make you do,” His question was more of an accusation.

“You… you know Nohr’s best soldiers?”  Leo held a tight grip on the fabric of his shirt, as if his chest was hurting him.

“Yeah… I know about the faceless…” Niles didn’t want to know where Leo was going with this.

“Only the most powerful mages are able to summon them… and this is what the side effects are…”

Niles felt his heart stop. This is why Iago looked like death incarnate.

“You cannot let him do this to you milord,” his voice was sad.

“I tried… I tried to just walk away and I couldn’t…” Leo’s voice was sounding weaker and weaker.

“Okay… okay. Don’t talk anymore right now okay? Just rest for now,” Niles shushed him. Leo nodded in response.

“Just nod or shake your head to this question; do you want me to carry you to your room?” Niles asked, his voice so soft.

Leo nodded. There was no way he could walk on his own like this. The doubt that he had from earlier just melted away.

                *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *             *

Leo had begged Niles not to tell his siblings about his condition, which was incredibly difficult for Niles.  He wanted to tell Xander. Only he had the power to tell Garon what was going on as Leo had dubbed him the ‘favourite’. And judging by the way Garon spoke to Leo and his sisters, it was obvious.

Leo spent the next few days in his bed, struggling to keep blood down. It wasn’t a lethal amount, but it was still concerning to see he young prince spit up bloody sputum.

Niles wanted nothing more than to pummel the old bastard for putting Leo through this, but Leo had given Niles orders not to lay a finger on Iago due to the consequences. The fact that a child knew of all these risks was concerning to Niles, but then again it didn’t surprise him. Leo’s intellect was unmatched, so knowing what everything could lead to was like a giant game of chess to him. He just had to do his best to protect his most valued pieces.

Sitting outside Leo’s room made Niles anxious. Not knowing what was going on in there was agonizing. Leo did say that Niles could enter if he felt the need, but he still felt uncomfortable with the idea. Most of the castle still saw this man as a criminal despite how much he had done to protect his young liege.

Niles sat on the floor and leaned against the oaken door. It opened inward, but he didn’t expect Leo to actually use that door. He very well knew that if he were to leave the room his secret passages were the first route that he would use.

Niles sighed. He still felt guilty about what he said and what Leo heard. Everything seemed fine, but he couldn’t help but feel as though Leo resented him for the comments he made about being an overpayed babysitter. He knew it was so much more than that.

A few people walked by the door through the hall, but they paid him no mind. Niles liked the fact that he could sit there and not be bugged by anyone, but it still felt surprisingly lonely. For the past few months, Leo had been with him for every waking moment. He would be teaching him, or showing him things about the castle that only he knew. He couldn’t help but feel as though he should be reciprocating and showing Leo some stealth but it felt wrong. Teaching a prince to hide in the dark was almost taboo to think about.

Niles shook his head and looked down at the tile floor. There must have been something Niles could do.

Suddenly the door behind him opened and he fell backwards into the room. So much for the door not opening.

“Why were you leaning on the door?” Leo peeked his head from behind it.

“I didn’t think you’d open it,” Niles said, scattering to his feet. He felt so much better about the incident when he saw how it made Leo smile. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better than before,” Leo said, stretching a little.

“So it only lasts a few days?” Niles asked, leaning on the doorframe.

“It depends how many are summoned. It wasn’t very many,” Leo’s smile immediately disappeared from his face.

“There isn’t going to be a next time with this though milord,” Niles took Leo’s hand and gripped it reassuringly.

“Niles…” Leo’s tone was shaky.

“You know I’d do anything for you,” Niles said, tempted to kneel before him to solidify his statement.

“Then please… don’t do anything at all.”

Niles felt his heart sink. He couldn’t sit idle while that mage used a child for summoning the undead, and practically killing a part of him each time. Leo said he was fine, but Niles could tell he wasn’t. He was so much paler than normal, and this boy looked like he never saw the sun once in his life. This time he looked like a walking corpse.

“Do you want me to get you anything?” Niles asked, gently letting go of Leo’s hand.

Leo shook his head. “I’m going to get changed and try and sneak an apple or two out of the kitchen.”

Niles couldn’t help but smirk at the playfulness in Leo’s tone.

“Why not get some berries and a loaf of bread while you’re at it?” Niles asked, playing into Leo’s intentions.

“Hrm, not a bad idea Niles. Not a bad idea,” Leo smirked.

Leo gently closed the door and Niles couldn’t help but still feel uneasy about Leo’s wellbeing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I APOLOGIZE ABOUT THE DELAY..... OH MY GOD.... I CANNOT GUARANTEE THE REGULARITY OF UPDATES... MY LIFE IS A MESS


	12. This... Probably won't be continued

I'm sorry to say but this fic is prob abandoned... i dont really have the intention of finishing it because i just... cant find the story anymore? i was gonna include a bunch of stuff that was my headcanons such as Leo killing his mom and stuff like that but i just don't have the energy for this one anymore. I feel like i cant get the characterization of Niles right and this one is just... weird. Like leo's 12... and niles is adult. Thats weird. I mean i have written before that niles is super not okay with it but i feel like i cant go any further. Im sorry D:


End file.
